THE JOURNALISTS who will be bringing us the news of tomorrow have published the 18th edition of their award-winning Limerick Voice newspaper.
On the front page, Limerick Voice reporter Anne Marie Roberts revealed how gangs are exploiting a legal loophole to lure children as young as eight into drug related activities.
In the wake of public scrutiny over sentencing in Ireland, reporters Emma McCarthy and Ailish Armstrong spoke to former Limerick state solicitor Michael Murray, who defended the principle of concurrent sentencing – where multiple sentences run simultaneously rather than consecutively.
The controversial sentencing debate is sadly apt at a time when the students of Limerick Voice stood in solidarity with the family of the late Joe Drennan, former editor of the paper, at a vigil organised in UL in support of the #JusticeforJoe campaign.
The Limerick Voice website was first to reveal that the DPP has lodged an appeal against the consecutive sentence given to the man responsible for the young journalism student’s death.
Speaking about this year’s edition, Limerick Voice Managing Editor Jack McKay said: “This year’s edition of Limerick Voice newspaper accentuates the power of campaign journalism with hard-hitting stories that matter to the Limerick community. We did this through our mission statement, ‘Your Voice, Our Mission’.”
The sports section celebrates the passion, resilience, and diversity of sports in Limerick, including Limerick hurler Cathal O’ Neill’s promotion of the Irish language, the challenges of securing state funding for smaller sports, and the work of Treaty United in raising the profile of women’s football in Limerick.
The multi-award-winning news project involved 22 final year journalism students from University of Limerick, who have been working on the project since September 2024.
UL lecturer and course director for the BA in Journalism and Communication programme, Dr Kathryn Hayes, who oversees the multimedia project each year, said working on Limerick Voice provides vital real-life skills and experience for journalism students.
“A newspaper publication and digital news project like Limerick Voice is more than just an assignment—it’s a real-world newsroom experience that challenges final-year journalism students to think critically, report responsibly, and engage their audience with impactful storytelling and particularly the importance of campaign journalism,” she said.
